More data was compromised in 2008 than in the previous four years combined, claims the Verizon Business RISK Team. That adds up to 285 million records, many of which could have been avoided if organizations would just implement some basic and consistent security measures.

The majority of breaches still occur because basic controls were not in place or because those that were present were not consistently implemented across the organization."

Changing default access credentials, avoiding shared credentials, and a regular review of user accounts are all on the list, and organizations should make sure to include security measures as part of their human resources termination procedures—"Several breaches in the last year were the result of malicious activity on the part of a recently terminated (or notified) employee."

Identifying a set of essential controls and ensuring their implementation across the organization without exception, and then moving on to more advanced controls where needed is a superior strategy against real-world attacks."

On Friday a Stockholm court will rule on whether the four men broke Swedish copyright law by running and funding the Web site, which has become the entertainment industry's enemy No. 1

The verdict Friday is likely to be appealed by the losing side. The judge could also decide to request advice from the European Court of Justice before making a decision.

Prosecutors charged them with accessory and conspiracy to break copyright law and asked the court to hand down one-year prison sentences to each. They also face 120 million kronor ($14.3 million) in compensation claims from Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., MGM Pictures Inc., Colombia Pictures Industries Inc., 20th Century Fox Films Co., Sony BMG, Universal and EMI.

said by TKJunkMail :

I, for one, hope they are found guilty and face the maximum penalties.

said by dadkins :

For being a search engine?
Who's next? Google?

said by swhx7 :

If some of the files are unauthorized copies, it's the responsibility of the users.

said by KrK :

Yeah, but TK, that still doesn't make it Pirate Bay's fault.

said by TKJunkMail :

I, for one, hope they are found guilty and face the maximum penalties.

said by KrK :

So, you are for miscarriage of justice IF it suits your ideology? I'll counter with I hope they are found innocent of all charges and the prosecution has to pay their costs.

If a little-known but influential alliance of state politicians, large retailers, and tax collectors have their way, the days of tax-free Internet shopping may be nearly over.

A bill expected to be introduced in the U.S. Congress as early as Monday would rewrite the ground rules for mail order and Internet sales by eliminating what its supporters view as a "loophole" that, in many cases, allows Americans to shop over the Internet without paying sales taxes.

"We will have the bill ready for introduction by next Monday," said Neal Osten of the National Conference of State Legislatures. "We finalized the language and now we're working out the remaining issues and adding some new provisions at the request of various stakeholders."

National Conference of State Legislatures and its allies believe the recession has sliced into sales tax revenue so much that Congress will have to act. A report this week from the Rockefeller Institute says that sales taxes have declined by 6.1 percent, the largest decline in half a century.

The final legislation is expected to be introduced by Sen. Mike Enzi, a Wyoming Republican, and Rep. Bill Delahunt, a Massachusetts Democrat, who have championed similar proposals in the past.

In response to complexity concerns, the pro-tax forces have offered a proposal that they hope Congress can be persuaded to adopt. The concept is called the Streamlined Sales Tax Agreement, invented in 2002 by state tax officials hoping to straighten out some of sales tax laws' most notorious convolutions.

Since 2003, more than 20 states have signed on, either wholly or partially, to the agreement, meaning they agree to simplify their tax codes and make them uniform. If enough states participate, proponents believe it will be easier to convince Congress to make sales collection mandatory for out-of-state retailers.

said by KrK :

I see this as inevitable. Politicians all the time act like citizens are "stealing" THEIR money by "cheating" on sales taxes. What they forget is it isn't their money, it belongs to the CITIZEN.